How much would being impaired hurt a launch?

By Eric Berger |
July 27, 2007

Five minutes before a space shuttle rockets into orbit, the pilot flips a switch that provides power to critical systems during launch.

From that moment until 8 1/2 minutes after liftoff, the pilot, commander and the rest of the space shuttle's crew become hands-off observers unless there's a significant problem.

But those few minutes of the flight into space are perhaps the most crucial, not the time for any crew members to be impaired as is alleged to have happened on at least two launches in the shuttle's history, according to a report being released today.

"For all intents and purposes those are the last manual switch throws until you're on orbit," said former astronaut Charles Bolden, a two-time pilot and two-time commander of shuttle missions, of the auxiliary power unit activation.

"But it's not a time for the commander and pilot to 'ooh' and 'ahh.' You're really, really monitoring the controls and displays as you go up."

The precise role of crew members during ascent is likely to emerge as a critical issue today when NASA releases a report on astronaut health matters, commissioned in the wake of Lisa Nowak's arrest.

The report is expected to conclude that two astronauts were cleared to fly despite concerns they were so intoxicated they posed a flight-safety risk.

It's a tradition for crew members, their spouses and friends to gather for a barbecue on the eve of a shuttle launch, and these gatherings sometimes include alcohol and a toast, said Dr. Jonathan Clark, a former NASA flight surgeon who now works as a liaison between the space agency and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute.

"Most of the astronauts are so tired, they're just going to want to go back and go to bed," Clark said.

Five hours before the scheduled launch, the astronauts wake up in their crew quarters, have breakfast and a short checkup with a flight surgeon and receive status updates.

After that they travel to the launchpad and get strapped into the vehicle. This is a cumbersome process because their flight suits are bulky and, as the rocket is pointed skyward, they "sit" on their backs.

Prior to flight all crew members perform several checks on their suits and communication systems.

Launch is so critical, Bolden said, that about 90 percent of commander training is dedicated to launch-day training, and specifically the brief ascent to orbit. The "ascent checklist" for a recent flight, STS-117, exceeded 200 pages.

But much of the tasks concern a scenario that has never occurred, an engine failure or some other problem that would force the commander and pilot to assume control of the shuttle and pilot it to an emergency landing site in Europe.

Upon reaching orbit most of the crew is busy with post-ascent checklists, such as checking the cargo brought up during the flight.

As a flight surgeon, Clark said there are greater worries for astronauts than a hangover. Preparation before a flight can leave overworked astronauts sleep-deprived.

Their flight medications can also cause problems, as can the motion sickness that accompanies an intense, bumpy ride into orbit.

"It's a high-stress period, and the biggest threat is that they're sleep-deprived and overworked before they start," Clark said. "That's a far greater challenge than drinking the night before a flight."